THE BLACK THORN CODEX
Episode 22 — The Sealing Ritual
November 15, 2023 — 9:45 AM
The Marseille bridge remained silent, but the world around it began to recover from the Altar's awakening. The danger was not over, but a fragile victory had been won: the first battle to contain the Chasm.
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The Marseille bridge was still shrouded in a light black mist, a remnant of the Chasm's presence. Clarisse, still trembling but conscious, walked beside Leander. Her hands were covered in fine greenish veins, a remnant of the entity that had attempted to possess her entirely.
The Codex, open before them, guided their every move. The pages revealed not only the ritual to be performed, but also the forgotten history of the First Altar. Léandre read aloud:
> "These stones were laid by forgotten priests, masters of the boundary between life and death. Their rituals bound the souls of the living to the stone, creating a channel of eternity between worlds. The Altar cannot be destroyed… it can only be sealed."
Clarisse nodded, her will strengthening despite the shadow growling within her.
"Then let us do it," she murmured.
They began the ritual. Léandre traced runes around the central fissure, while Clarisse spoke the incantations, her voice wavering but firm. The dark energy around the bridge reacted immediately, twisting, as if the Altar itself were trying to tear them from their positions.
Black roots rose again, but this time they encountered an invisible wall of green light, emanating from Clarisse. The entity roared through her, but its strength was gradually diminishing.
Leander felt the power of the Codex amplify, a flow of ancient knowledge flowing through it. He finally understood: the ritual didn't just seal the heart of the Chasm, it bound human will to stone, restoring the balance disrupted by the opening of the First Altar.
"Just a little longer..." Leander breathed, his fingers clenched on the pages.
Clarisse concentrated all her mental strength, holding the entity precariously balanced. The central fissure slowly shrank, the roots retreated into the ground, and the pulsing black mass lost its intensity. A dull vibration ran through the bridge, then everything stopped.
For a moment, there was absolute silence. The First Altar was sealed. Not destroyed, but contained. The shadow within Clarisse recoiled, acknowledging the human victory.
Léandre opened a page of the Codex he had never seen before. Inscriptions detailed the goal of the Altar's creators:
> "The priests sought to preserve the memory of souls, to bind man and stone to transcend time. Their ambition was not evil, but absolute mastery of the cycle of life and death. The Altar is a fragment of this madness."
Clarisse breathed deeply, freed for the moment from the possession.
"We held on..." she murmured.
"Yes," replied Léandre, "but this is only the beginning. The Codex will guide us, but other altars may still exist... and other fragments of this ancient power could awaken."
The bridge of Marseille was gradually returning to calm. The city still slept, unaware that its destiny had fallen into shadow. But Léandre and Clarisse now knew they were bound to this ancient power, bearers of forbidden knowledge and a terrible responsibility.
And in the silent heart of the First Altar, a gentle pulse continued, like a reminder that even sealed, the abyss was never completely vanquished.